Adapting
by crazy alligator
Summary: Threeshot.  Rukia is depressed, and Renji is determined. Kaien and Miyako are getting involved for the sake of young love.  Takes place shortly after Renji becomes a shinigami, and before Kaien and Miyako's deaths.  100% RenRuki, slight KaiMia.  Complete.
1. Chapter 1

Okay, so, here's me again(sorry about infrequent and late updates, I've been unusually busy lately), and now I've got a twoshot(may turn into a threeshot)for everyone. So, yeah, this takes place shortly after Renji enters the thirteen court guard squads, and before Kaien and Miyako's deaths. This fic has been a work in progress(I've been brainstorming it for a few months now), but I really like this one, and I hope you guys do to. Enjoy!

Adapting

Rukia leaned back against the rough bark of the tree, almost on the verge of tears. She had, again, run away from the training grounds during sparring practice, all because of her stupid, stupid emotions. She couldn't help it, she just couldn't help the sadness that kept overwhelming her. It was just...the small girl's lip began to quiver and she could feel the waterworks coming again...

"Hey, what's the matter?" came the voice of her mentor, and his face appeared upside-down, right in front of hers. He held two steaming cups of tea in his hands, and was staring at her expectantly. Rukia's eyes widened in surprise. He pulled this trick constantly, but she never had been able to get used to it.

"Ka-Kaien-dono!" she exclaimed. The raven-haired shinigami hadn't expected for her teacher to come to her, as he usually left her to her thoughts when she left training suddenly, as she had done only minutes ago. Kaien jumped down to his feet, somehow managing not to spill a single drop of tea. He quickly handed her one of the cups, which she took gratefully, the piping hot temperature warming her small hands considerably. Her surprise from her superior's sudden arrival, though, was quickly taken over by her existing depression, and her eyes went downcast again. Kaien sighed, a bit more dramatically than was necessary, and took a seat next to his student.

"Seriously, Rukia," he continued. "This is the tenth time you've run off during training, and in my experience that means something serious is going on." He continued to look at her, and she continued to avoid his gaze, not even sipping her steaming tea. It was as if she were conflicted about revealing the source of her distress, as if she wanted to, but felt she couldn't for some reason. Kaien waited a few moments, to see if she would tell, but ultimately decided that he wasn't going to get anything out of her. He stood up suddenly, emptying the remainder of his beverage into the grass.

"Well, if you're really not going to tell me, then-"

"-It's just...I'm behind everyone else..." she interrupted. Frankly, Kaien was a bit surprised that she had decided to speak up, but he immediately plopped back down beside her to listen.

"No one except you, Miyako-dono, and Ukitake-taicho treat me normally..." she continued. "I'm not nearly as strong as anyone else, and I don't like being treated like I'm royalty...I guess I'm just having a hard time adapting, is all..." Her expression wasn't changing, and though Kaien knew she was telling the truth, he also sensed that she was leaving a part of it out. And he didn't intend on giving up after getting this far.

"Then...why did you join the Kuchiki clan?" he asked. "Surely you knew that people would put you on a pedestal if you were taken in by a noble family like them, right?" Rukia's head dropped into her knees, and she instantly began sobbing into her hakama.

"W-Wow!" exclaimed Kaien. "Wh-What did I say?" He was shocked. For some reason, what he had just said struck a nerve in his subordinate, and she refused to stop weeping.

"...En...di..." cried Rukia in a muffled voice, her face still buried in her cloth-clad legs. Kaien's eyebrow raised. Was she...saying someone's name? He leaned a bit closer to the melancholy girl, placing a comforting hand on her shoulder.

"What did you say?" he asked, trying to sound as least-interrogative as he could, in an attempt to make her repeat herself. Rukia lifted her head from her soaked hakama pants, her closed eyes red and swollen and her face still streaking with the tears that were beginning to wet her hair.

"RENJI!" she screamed in grief, her face smothering itself into her pants once more as her sobs of sadness escalated. A shocked Kaien stared in disbelief at the fact that Rukia had just yelled someone's name, and, at that, a _man's _name as well.

"Kaien!" called a voice in the distance. Said man's head snapped to the source of the sound, making out the form of his wife's running outline peaking over top of the hill. If Rukia had noticed the shout, then it was obvious that she was ignoring it, as her blubbering went on as if nothing had occurred. Upon reaching where the two were, Miyako stopped, her face softening as she took in the sight of the weeping Rukia.

"Ukitake-taicho asked me to follow you, and then I rushed here when I heard the yell," she informed quickly, before redirecting her attention from Kaien to Rukia. "What's-" she began, reaching an arm out for the depressed girl, and then being promptly interrupted by her husband, who laid his hand over hers, using his other to signal her closer.

"I don't know all the details..." whispered Kaien into Miyako's ear, his hand beside his mouth so the conversation was concealed, "...but Rukia seems to be upset about a man."

"A man?" spoke Miyako, quirking an eyebrow. "What man?"

"I'm not entirely sure who he is, but the scream you heard was Rukia yelling the name 'Renji.'"

"Renji...wasn't that one of the new squad 5 recruits from a couple months back?" asked Miyako, her brows crinkling in concentration as she tried to remember the boy.

"I think you're right," agreed Kaien, much in the same state as his wife. "Yeah, Renji...I remember him from the lineup of new recruits that we were looking at. Abarai Renji...he had bright red hair...his hair's the only reason I remember him, actually." Both individuals turned towards Rukia, whose cries had died down and were now silent, and their faces reflected concern.

"Rukia," spoke Miyako softly, kneeling down and placing a hand on her shoulder, mimicking what her husband had done earlier, "What's your problem with Renji?" There were a few muffled sniffles before Rukia's face lifted up a bit, enough for her voice to be heard clearly, but not so much that they could see her features.

"I miss him so much..." she replied in a broken, miserable voice, her grip around her knees tightening.

"What do you mean?" It was another question from Miyako, and Rukia didn't move an inch when she answered,

"We were always supposed to be together...we were family...and he...he let me go...I want him back...I want my Renji!" At this point, she was nearly crying again, and her head raised up enough so that the watching couple could see the incredible sadness painted in her eyes.

"Were you and Renji...romantically involved?" asked Kaien, trying to put the question as delicately as he could. Rukia's gaze shifted from her lap to the side and a tiny bit of a blush was apparent on her face.

"N-No, but..." she trailed off, her eyes watering up a little more as her fingers tightened around her legs again. At this, both Kaien and Miyako were immediately made aware of how their subordinate felt about the young man.

"Explain it to us from the beginning," coaxed Miyako gently, moving from facing Rukia to sitting closely beside her, allowing the younger woman to nestle into her side for comfort.

"We met when we were just little kids, orphans, in Rukongai..." explained Rukia, her voice not as shaky as earlier. "It was the 78th district, and we had to steal and hunt for food and clean water." Knowing much about the highly-numbered districts of the Rukon, Kaien and Miyako did not need to be told this to know that it was very true. "For ten years, we were together, just us and our buddies," continued Rukia. "But after all that time had passed and we were grown, all our comrades...they were gone. Renji and I..." she seemed to almost start weeping upon saying the man's name again, "...we both had sufficient spiritual pressure, and we decided to become shinigami, so that we could live a better life, and be happy. As soon as we were accepted, I was assigned to the normal class, and Renji to the advanced one, even though that idiot can't do kidou to save his life." Surprisingly, her tone was laced not with jealousy, like one might expect, but was said with an air of sarcasm and teasing. It was obvious that she and this 'Renji' were, or at least had been, the best of friends, had been on terms that were so good that they would mock and make fun of each other constantly, but it would all be in good fun.

"I was sad," continued Rukia, "because Renji always seemed to be occupied with something to do for his advanced class, he was always on an advanced class-only mission, or doing all the extra homework he always complained about. The only thing that kept me from becoming too depressed was that he would always go out of his way to talk to me when I showed up. Even if he was hanging around with his other friends, or even if he was training, something that he took VERY seriously, he would interrupt whatever he was doing to come and say hi to me, to ask how my day was and what was going on with me in general." A small smile adorned her features, showing both in her mouth and in her eyes as she went on, "So, I knew that he was just oblivious to the effect that all his extra occupation had on me. If I would've told him, I know he would've made more time for me, because that was just the way he was...but I didn't want to burden him. He had so much on his plate, and I didn't want to be the one messing up his concentration, so I settled for the small windows of conversation I could have with him during the day." Now, her voice was fully back to normal, and the signs that she had been crying(puffy eyes, red face, and dried tear streaks)were nearly gone.

"It didn't help that I wasn't making any friends," said Rukia, her story going on. Renji had always teased her about being unsocial, and she had known that it was probably a combination of that, and the fact that she was too hung up on him most of the time to make a real effort at it. "And one day, a group of men came by the academy. It was so obvious they were nobles, because one of them was wearing kenseiken, and they all had splendid clothing on. I was taken out of class and led to a room the same day they arrived. When I went in, the heavy spiritual pressure and the awe of being in the presence of high nobles kept me from saying anything. They explained everything to me. They wanted to adopt me into the clan of Kuchiki, pull some strings to have me graduate immediately and without a final exam, and then place me here, in the thirteenth division. They left as soon as Renji burst in, and I told him everything that they had offered me. Just as I was about to tell him that I didn't want to go, that I wanted to stay with him, he exclaimed right in my face that this was wonderful, the best thing that I could have ever hoped for. At the moment, I was too surprised at the offer itself, too angry and sad that he had wanted to send me off that I didn't try to talk some sense into his head, and I left him with a 'thank you.' All the rest of the night, I was up, crying, and after the initial emotions of anger had left, I realized that he couldn't have wanted me to go...I had known him for ten years, and that was the last thing he would ever do in the world. Even though it seemed that way, I know deep down that he just wanted me to be better off, and now...now, I just want him back..." Instead of crying, she just stayed still, depressed, out of tears to cry for her friend.

After this story, Kaien and Miyako, well...they were shocked, to say the least. Never had they thought that Rukia, especially at such a young age, had been through this much heartbreak. Miyako, still holding the younger girl to her, turned her head in the direction of her husband, and the two held a silent conversation.

'_You know what we have to do, Kaien.._.' said his wife's gaze, and he nodded firmly, in total agreement. Not a second later, he was gone, flash-stepping away to track down the man his subordinate loved.

* * *

><p>Renji sat atop the roof of a squad 5 building, his mind lost in deep thought. Just a few weeks ago, he had been Abarai Renji, a rat from the slums with nothing except a dream and a little bit of spiritual pressure. But now, he thought, he was a shinigami. Even though he still fell under the category of a filthy kid from the streets, he was prouder than ever to be able to tell himself, and others, that he was now Abarai Renji, a shinigami of the seireitei, fifth squad. An unseated shinigami, true, but a shinigami nonetheless. And this step, this step of graduating the academy and actually reaching the title of death god...it was only one step in the many he would have to take to be good enough for her. <em>His <em>Rukia. She deserved the best life possible, deserved to be happy. Rather than dragging her down with him so they could be poor and hungry, and be stepped on by the rest of society, he would better himself to the point where he could give her everything, and anything, she wanted, to the point where they could walk through the hallways proudly, and be seen not as rats, but as respected members of the thirteen court guard squads.

"Where have you been?" came a sudden voice from behind him. Renji, not surprised that someone had come looking for him, turned his head in the direction of his newly arrived friend, Izuru Kira.

"Just sittin' here," replied the redhead, leaving out the part about his fantasy of one day reconnecting with Rukia, marrying her, and maybe, just maybe, conceiving a child with her.

"You weren't in the mess hall at lunch time," said Kira firmly, revealing his obvious suspicion.

"I wasn't hungry." It was a simple reply, but Renji's blonde companion could tell that the man was lying through his teeth, because, number one, he was Renji, and Renji was always hungry. Number two, his face was in a set of deep thought and concentration.

"You're thinking about her again, aren't you?" The question was blunt, so much so that Renji almost wanted to punch himself for making his feelings so obvious to those around him.

"What's it to you?" the tattooed shinigami practically hissed, not wanting to have this conversation again. He damn well knew what he was going to do, and no one, not even one of his close buddies, was going to change his mind.

"You should just go get her." Renji whipped fully around at his friend's statement, a look of disbelief painting his features. There was no way this man was Kira, the same Kira who constantly nagged on him to stay away from Rukia because of her recently-raised status, who always told him that keeping his distance and letting her go would be for the best.

"Who are you, and what have you done with Kira?" asked Renji, eyes still wide. Instead of laughing, said man simply cast his comrade a semi-serious gaze, taking a seat beside him.

"I've seen how you act, Renji," spoke the blonde. "Though I haven't known you as long as Rukia, I've come to know how you are, and what your priorities are. I know that I've told you countless times that you should just stay away, and I still think that doing that would be for the better." He paused for a moment, to redirect his gaze towards the horizon. "But, regardless of what I think you should do, I know that whatever I say isn't going to get past the stubbornness that shields that big head of yours." The comment made Renji twitch in irritation, however he allowed Kira to finish. "So, as your friend, I'm obligated to support you in whatever venture you choose to take on, no matter how crazy it might seem to be." For a minute, Renji was touched. But before he could say anything pertaining to the heartfelt little speech, the man beside him spoke up again.

"I've heard that you might be transferred to squad 11." Renji's head snapped over to Kira, his eyes widening in the process. He had never heard such a thing, though the redhead figured that it wasn't exactly commonplace to hear rumors about oneself.

"That..." he said, blinking a couple times, "...would be awesome!" Now it was Kira's turn to look dumbfounded.

"What do you mean, Renji?" he asked. "Don't you like being under Aizen-taicho's command?" The excitement didn't leave Renji's voice or face as he answered,

"Well, of course Aizen-taicho is great, but this is squad 11 we're talking about!" beamed Renji. "Fights happening 24/7, and it's got the toughest soul reapers you'll ever find! Being around a group like that would make my strength skyrocket!" Before Kira could intervene with his own words, Renji went on, "And I've heard about the third seat, too, Madarame Ikkaku. Man, if I could get him to train me, just imagine how strong I would be!" Happiness surged throughout him as he thought about it, thought about being that strong...just fathoming it invigorated him down to his core.

"You really do love her, don't you?" Kira, who had been the one to change the subject, was bringing their conversation back around to Rukia again, and Renji's face went serious again, his fists loosening.

"More than you could ever know," he said softly, his tone an unidentifiable emotion, somewhere between determination and devotion. His eyes had gone hard, filled with what was, apparently, love, as he gazed out at the horizon. Suddenly, Kira stood, placing a hand firmly on Renji's shoulder, before stating simply,

"Good luck, Renji..." Renji, unchanged by this, simply listened to the sound of his friend's footsteps as the man walked away, his mind re-swearing him to the promise he had made on the day of Rukia's adoption.

'_Good luck, Renji...'_ He nearly scoffed at the words, muttering to himself,

"God knows I'll need it..."

END OF PART 1

Did you like it? I hope so. I'm not really sure when I'll be able to update, but I will try to work on this as much as I can, so please stay tuned! Though I can't promise a definite update time, I can promise that, one way or another, by hell or high water, this WILL be updated. So don't give up on me! Also, one question: How do you guys like the way I portrayed Rukia's point of view on the matter? Just asking, since this is my first time really writing about her thoughts on it, and since she's harder to do it for than Renji. Tite Kubo is the owner of Bleach, not myself, and I love and appreciate all comments and opinions!


	2. Adapting: Part 2

So, yeah...it turned into a threeshot...

Adapting: Part 2

Kaien entered through the doors of the squad 5 headquarters, determined to obtain the information he desired. Walking up to the large desk in the center of the big room, he was surprised to discover the attendant at the desk fast asleep, snoring as a pool of saliva spread around his head, soaking the various papers that were scattered across the wood.

"Hey, mister," said Kaien, poking the man's head with his index finger. The man's eye cracked open as he let out a small 'huh?...' Said eye traveled upward to the very person who was still poking him, and upon seeing who it was, the man snapped up, both eyes wide open as he violently wiped the drool off of his face.

"I-I'm sorry, Shiba-fukutaicho, p-please don't report me, it'll never happen again..." the man continued to ramble on as he tried to make something of the now-illegible papers, which were covered In spit-smeared ink. Kaien swiftly put his hand up, as if signaling a halt, and the attendant froze, his glasses-hidden eyes raising to meet those of his superior. An amused smile broke out across Kaien's face.

"Don't worry, it's perfectly fine," assured the lieutenant with a laugh. His face became slightly more serious, but his smile retained itself. "But I do need you to help me with something."

"Y-Yes, Shiba-fukutaicho?" asked the attendant, still a bit shook up from his sudden awakening. Kaien's grin simply widened, as he got a kick out of the man's awkwardness.

"I need to know where I can find Abarai Renji," said Kaien. "He was assigned to this squad recently, fresh out of the academy." The attendant pushed aside the ruined papers, grabbing and leafing through the ones that were still usable.

"Does fukutaicho know what his rank is?" asked he man at the desk, his nervousness dissipating and being replaced with focus and concentration.

"I believe that he's an unseated officer," answered Kaien, growing somewhat bored as the man continued to shuffle through various pieces of people.

"Ah, here it is!" exclaimed the attendant, snapping Kaien out of the daydream he had drifted off into. "Hm...it looks like he's due to be transferred to squad eleven in one week." Kaien's eyes widened a bit. _So he's a fighter, is he?_

"Well...where can I find him now?" asked the raven-haired man, quickly recovering from the shock.

"Well..." the attendant jumbled the papers a little, "He's in barracks 5, room 381." Kaien nodded, smirking at the new found information, and knowing that it would help him solve the Rukia problem much faster. He was about to depart, before another thought struck him.

"Does it say why exactly Abarai's being transferred to the eleventh?" he asked, wanting to get at least a loose grasp on this man's possible personality. Another scan of the attendant's eyes over the documents, and an answer was given.

"All it says here is that he is 'unmanageable.'" Kaien thought a moment, before nodding, and then departing, a 'Have a good day, Shiba-fukutaicho!' coming from the attendant. _Alright_, thought the lieutenant as the doors closed behind him. _I'm gonna go with stubborn, hotheaded, and very, very willful. _The simple adjective 'unmanageable' told him that that much was probably true about Abarai.

* * *

><p>When Miyako returned to training grounds, she found that they were now mostly empty, aside from a few stragglers her and there who insisted on continuing to spar, the captain watching over them as they whipped around wildly and slashed their swords at each other.<p>

"Ukitake-taicho," said Miyako, arriving swiftly at the captain's side. "Third seat Shiba Miyako, reporting back, sir." The man turned to her with a worried smile, expressing both his happiness to see her and nervousness about Rukia. He quickly asked,

"How is she, Miyako?" Said woman lifted her head from its bowed position to look up at him, and replied,

"She is mostly alright for the time being, captain, however I did not send her home." Ukitake, confused, quirked an eyebrow, his face dumbfounded.

"Why not? I told you it was perfectly alright to do so." As expected, he was not angry in the slightest, only concerned and confused.

"The Kuchiki mansion is not the best place for her to be right now, sir." It was a simple response, said as if it were a normal, every-day gesture, and it perplexed Ukitake all the more.

"Could you explain what you mean, Miyako?" questioned the white-haired man, still at a loss even as Miyako tried to give him a hint.

"If you would follow me to the home that I share with Kaien, sir, I will explain everything along the way," promised the third seat, not wanting Rukia's personal and very emotional story to be overheard and spread around to the whole division. "That is where I have sent Rukia, so if you wish to ask her any questions on the matter, she will be present." A sudden thought struck Ukitake.

"Where is Kaien, by the way?" he asked. "Did he remain at your home to watch over Rukia?" Miyako promptly shook her head.

"No, sir, Kaien is currently searching for someone." Ukitake feared that asking the identity of this person would only confuse him more, but he decided to inquire on the matter anyways.

"Who?"

"That I will also explain on the way," specified Miyako, and Ukitake nodded his head on agreement, the two soul reapers flash stepping off not a moment later.

* * *

><p>Kira walked slowly and carefully through the hallways of the barracks, making sure not to aggravate the areas on his body which had become sore during his sparring session with Renji, which had lasted for hours on end. That lunatic was out there even now, after the sun was starting to set, and they had been at it since 6:00 A.M.<p>

That hothead was going to kill himself. Kira was absolutely sure that, one day, that crazy, redheaded hothead was going to die of overexertion. Kira, himself, was still sweating like a pig in the middle of summer, and as soon as he reached his room, he planned on falling over onto his futon and sleeping for a solid 12 hours or so. Turning into the hallway which he had to pass through to reach his quarters, the blonde was shocked to see a man knocking impatiently on Renji's door.

"Helloooo?" called the man, not noticing Kira in the slightest. "Abarai Renji? You there? This is lieutenant Shiba Kaien of squad 13, I need to see you." Obviously, Kaien didn't know that the very shinigami he was searching for was out, because, after receiving no answer whatsoever, he started up again. "Would you come out if I said it had something to do with a girl named _Rukia_?" Kira's eyes widened.

"Are you talking about Kuchiki Rukia?" asked the younger shinigami. The superior officer snapped up for a moment, shocked that someone had been standing just down the hall from where he was. When Kaien didn't say anything, Kira spoke again:

"Renji's not here." The lieutenant looked down at the ground, and then mumbled something, probably a curse, under his breath, before redirecting his attention back towards Kira again.

"Can you tell me where to find him?" There was just a hint of desperation in Kaien's voice, telling Kira that this wasn't just a silly little matter he was dealing with.

"What does it have to do with Rukia Kuchiki?" asked Kira, wanting more information on the subject. Kaien sighed, before one side of his mouth quirked upwards into an awkward grin, and his hand moved up to scratch at the back of his head.

"Well...you see..." he spoke in between twitches, Kira unable to identify whether they were caused by anger or embarrassment, "I kinda do wish I could tell you, but...I really can't." The blonde was a bit surprised at the lieutenant's behavior. He wasn't acting like a superior officer at all, he was acting like a a little kid who had sworn to keep his best buddy's secret, or else face the penalty of poking his own eye out with a needle and then hoping to die. But, he _was_ a lieutenant...and, to be honest, it really _wasn't _any of Kira's business in the first place, even if he _was _Renji's good friend. It was between Renji and Rukia...and they had, or at least once had, something he knew he could never fathom. So, he decided to reveal Renji's location.

"He's training at the fifth squad training grounds." Kaien's eyeballs nearly popped out of their sockets as he replied,

"Huh? He's training at this hour?" Kira nodded, confirming the statement, and all Kaien could do remember back to Rukia's statement about Renji taking his training 'VERY seriously.'

"Well, then..." continued the lieutenant, chuckling, "It looks like I've got an interesting guy on my hands."

* * *

><p>"You Abarai Renji?" The sudden question cut through the air sharply, disrupting the concentration in Renji's mind, his body freezing as his sword halted to a stop in mid-swing, his head and eyes turning to meet those of the 13th squad's fukutaicho.<p>

"Sh-Shiba-fukutaicho?" he asked, flabbergasted, his face clearly showing as much. This man was Rukia's superior, the vice captain of her squad. Renji would've delved deeper into this, but then, remembering that he was in the presence of a higher officer, Renji let his sword drop to the dirt ground with a clatter, stiffening up as he bowed respectfully.

"Yes, fukutaicho?" he asked, attempting to sound as formal as possible, even though his physical appearance showed the exact opposite. He was sweating, panting, and exhausted, strands of scarlet falling loose from his ponytail and the hem of his shihakusho lowered almost to his stomach.

"At ease, shinigami," ordered Kaien, and Renji straightened up, relaxing a bit, and attempting subtly to fix his clothing, if only a little. He opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off. "And I'd like it if you'd answer my question," continued Kaien. "I'll ask again: Are you Abarai Renji?"

"Yes, sir," replied Renji without hesitation. To the redhead's surprise, Kaien grinned happily, and then clapped a hand over his shoulder.

"See, now how hard was that?" he laughed, his grin spreading. His face became just a little bit more serious as he continued, "Now, is there any chance I could talk to you about something?" For just a minute, the idea flashed through Renji's mind that this man wanted to talk to him about being moved to squad 11. Sure, he was from squad 13, but he _was _still a highly ranked officer.

"Of course, Shiba-fukutaicho," he answered promptly, trying to hide his excitement as said man eyed him curiously.

"Why is it you're out here training?" asked Kaien, surprising the younger shinigami across from him. "The sun's almost down. Every other shinigami in the seireitei has gone home to their barracks; even squad 11 is packing it up. So, why are you still out here?" Of course, Renji knew very well why he insisted on continuing to train, but the only person he had confided in about it was Kira, and he didn't really want to reveal to anyone else his eventual plans, lest Captain Kuchiki appear at his door one day with his sword pointed directly towards the ground.

"I want to become stronger," he half-lied, hoping that his answer would suffice. After all, most every other shinigami in the court of pure souls also wanted to become stronger, even if their desires were not nearly as strong as his. Surely the excuse would fool the lieutenant.

"Why do you want to become stronger?" Shit. But, then again, this was a lieutenant...the higher ups were almost never tricked that easily. Renji would've tried to talk back, would've tried to say something like, 'why does anyone want power? Why should I have to give you an excuse?', and in the presence of anyone else asking these same questions, he would have. But this was Rukia's commanding officer...god forbid he go back to her and start spouting out things about what a disrespectful asshole he had become.

"I want to move higher up the ranks," he answered. In truth, he really couldn't have cared less about his rank, as long as he could become strong enough to defeat Byakuya Kuchiki, and to win Rukia back. But, coincidentally, when he _did_ become that powerful, it was almost certain that he would be promoted to captain(_when_ he did, because he was never going to give up until he reached his goal.)

"Why do you want to move up the ranks?" This guy was really starting to piss Renji off.

"I want to earn a respectable position among the gotei 13." Another typical answer, and Kaien gave him a curious glance, wondering if his obvious secrecy had anything to do with Rukia.

"You want respect, eh?" Renji was relieved that the man had decided to stop prying, that was until he spoke up again: "And why is that?" If Renji weren't keeping himself tightly in check right now, he was sure that he would've punched this guy right in the nose. Why did anyone else want respect? Either this guy knew nothing about human nature, or he was just trying to toy with the redhead's mind.

"I want to have merit to my name." Well, it was a lame excuse, but...it was all Renji had without totally giving up his plan. And, as expected the question came again from the older man's lips:

"Why?" That was it. Renji had had enough. He was exhausted, and at this point, he knew there was no way out of it.

"Because..." he whispered, his voice becoming louder in an instant, "Because I need enough merit to challenge Captain Kuchiki to a serious battle! I need to be in a good position so that he will fight me as an honorable warrior, instead of spurning me like the mutt I am!" Now, this one was a shocker. Kaien's eyes widened. He had said it with so much determination, so much passion...and on the edges of his voice, Kaien could also hear the sound of intense heartbreak, of a longing that sounded worse to live with than death. And again, the lieutenant marveled at how much these kids had lived through, and how strong their feelings were for each other. In truth, it almost made the man want to cry, because it was just so...sad.

"Well..." muttered Kaien, as Renji's eyes flitted to the ground, "It looks like it's not unrequited..." Renji's head snapped up, looking at him in puzzlement. It all made sense. The older man didn't need to ask more questions. Captain Kuchiki was Rukia's brother...defeating him on the battlefield would give any man the right to earn a blessing, if Rukia consented to a marriage.

"What...?"

"She loves you too," said Kaien, cutting the younger man off. It did not need to be specified who 'she' was. Renji's brow furrowed in a multitude of things(disbelief, amazement, surprise), and Kaien stepped closer, continuing quietly, "And she misses you. She misses you a whole lot." A piece of paper slipped into Renji's hand, and then the superior was gone in a flash. The redhead glanced down at the paper, seeing that it was and address. And, based on the conversation he had just had with Kaien, he knew that it was where Rukia was.

"Rukia..." he whispered painfully, and he watched as small droplets of water trickled down into the paper, trickled down from his face. His legs shook, and he clenched the paper tightly in his hand, the tears refusing to stop.

"RUKIA!"

END OF PART 2

Well...it ended on an angstyer(know it's not a word, don't care)note than I originally planned on, but I'm actually quite satisfied with it. What do you guys think? I hope you like it. Bleach is owned by Tite Kubo, not myself, and I love and appreciate all comments and opinions!


	3. Adapting:Part 3

Here it is, folks! The third, and final part of Adapting, and I'd like to thank everyone for all the favs, reviews and alerts. I love you all, and I hope that you guys really like this final chapter, I tried to make it extra special. :) Enjoy!

Adapting: Part 3

THE NEXT DAY

Ukitake stood before the door of Miyako and Kaien's home, awaiting the black-haired man who was scheduled to arrive shortly. Hearing Rukia's story had been a shocking experience, to say the least. He didn't ask said girl questions about it, however, simply because the last thing he wanted to do was risk stressing her out even more. Ukitake was sure that her ordeal had been very emotionally taxing, and it all made sense now, why she she had been leaving the training grounds constantly, while the rest of squad never seemed fazed. Suddenly, there was a slight bit of wind by his side, and the white-haired man was snapped from his thoughts as his lieutenant appeared before him.

"Ready to go, taicho?" The question was short, simple and to point, and even though he didn't need to(an answer was obvious by his smirk), Ukitake gave a verbal answer as he stepped into a position to perform flash step.

"Of course."

* * *

><p>Renji rapped evenly on the door of the home which held the address written on the slip of paper Kaien had given him. After having a night to sleep, he had come here immediately after throwing on his shinigami robes, hoping to god that this wasn't a sick joke. Soon enough, the door was opened by a smiling woman with black hair, her locks done up in a bun.<p>

"Hello," she greeted happily. "You must be Abarai-san." Renji, confused at why this woman was acting so jolly in this situation, nodded once to confirm his identity. The woman's smile widened. "I am Shiba Miyako. It's nice to meet you." She bowed, and Renji, at a loss, did the same, mumbling a 'nice to meet you, too' in the process.

"Please follow me," requested Miyako, and Renji obeyed, unable to hide his nervousness as the woman led him to a shoji door in the hall. Slowly, she opened the door, and the sight revealed made Renji's throat tighten. Rukia lay on a futon, facing the wall, her back turned to them. Her body was engulfed by a blanket, aside from a small, uncovered part around her shoulders which showed that she still wore her full shinigami uniform. A nudge from Miyako coaxed him to go further, and when he was completely inside the room, she shut the door softly.

"I-I'm fine now, Miyako-dono," Rukia assured, before Renji could even say anything. "You don't need to bother yourself with checking up on me...I'll be fine. And, thank you. Thanks for supporting me and letting me stay here." There was a pause in the aura of the room for a minute, as if time froze for just the slightest fraction of a second, before Renji silently stepped closer to her tiny body, carefully taking a seat behind her, his hand hesitating a bit before reaching out to pull the covers to her waist, then rubbing her back slowly, in a pattern of soothing circles. Rukia seemed to stiffen from the touch at first, probably a reaction of surprise, since the action had been sudden, but after a few seconds she loosened up, relaxing, allowing the warm hand to massage her muscles, and Renji was sure that he heard her let a tiny, almost inaudible sigh of pleasure.

"Thank you," she spoke, repeating her earlier statement of gratification, and not appearing to notice that the body part resting on her back was much larger than the one which belonged to the woman she believed she was speaking to. There seemed to be an obvious elephant in the room, one that Rukia surely had with Miyako, and Renji couldn't help but wonder if it involved himself. Out of nowhere, Rukia decided to continue with her words: "There's no point in lying to you now...to tell the truth, I am still sad...stable, as of now, but...there's still a gaping hole in my heart that I know won't go away, and...I...never mind. I'll be fine, Miyako-dono. I'll manage. Even if it kills me everyday inside, I'll find a way to-"

"-Rukia..." said Renji, pain lacing his voice as he stopped the motions of his hand on her back, interrupting her speech. He didn't need to ask, now, why she was in so much pain. Had he known...had he known that his action of letting her go to the noble clan would rip her heart out and tear it in half to this extent, he would have never considered his previous decision, not even for a second. Of course, he had seen the pain and hurt painted in her eyes, had seen the lone tear which traveled the expanse of her cheek when he had flat-out lied to her face, but that was a normal reaction; breaking a long, strong bond of companionship such as theirs always caused hurt for both parties, but he hadn't just hurt her feelings and brought a few tears to the surface...he had broken her heart entirely, caused it to shatter, and caused her whole world to come crashing down around her in flaming ruins. Of course, he had experienced similar feelings, but he had been prepared to endure it, and he had held on to the hope that he could and would become good enough to be with her once more in the future, but Rukia...she had nothing to tell her that they would ever have any chance of being together again, all she had was his memory and a cold, empty room at night in which to cry herself to sleep. And, suddenly, Renji was filled to the brim with guilt and regret. He had never, not once in his existence, _ever_ wanted to cause her so much pain and distress...his goal was to keep those very feelings from ever entering her mind. But, instead, while trying to achieve as much...he had failed completely.

At that voice, at that oh-so-familiar voice calling her name, Rukia gasped, her eyes going wide in an instant. Before she realized it, she had whipped around, throwing the covers off of her torso, and his hand off of her back as she propped herself up on her forearm. This...it was unreal. The very man she had been discussing with who she _thought _was her superior officer was right here, in front of her, looking at her as if he were about to explode into a chant of 'I'm sorrys'. He had changed, physically...he had more tattoos, and she could swear that his hair had grown a bit...but he was still her Renji, her Renji that had been with her for most of her life, had gone through thick and thin with her. They had experienced good times and bad times together, pain and happiness, fear and pride, and it was all Rukia could do not to burst into tears upon seeing the man she loved once again.

"Rukia," choked out Renji once more, before she could get a word in. He practically flew forward, nearly crushing her as he embraced her, and then pulling her from the futon almost completely, setting her in his lap in the position one would use for a bridal-style carry. "I'm so sorry..." said his shaky, trembling voice, and Rukia, still held firmly to Renji's chest, heard something in his voice that she never quite had before. She lifted her arm from her body, reaching out to touch his cheek, and then cupping it so she could yank it up, to make him look her in the eyes.

"Renji..." she said, trembling, trying desperately to halt her tears even as her redheaded friend looked about ready to cry. She shook her head slowly, continuously, something that Renji immediately took as a bad sign, until she spoke: "Never again. Promise me, never again. Don't ever leave." At this point, she didn't care about his apology, nor did she care about accepting it. Even if he had hurt her, his intentions had been nothing but purely good. He had wanted for her to be better off, even though it killed him inside, and she knew that he had done nothing wrong; she should have spoken up, she knew, and told him how she felt. If anyone was fit to be apologizing, she felt that it should be her, even though he would surely protest any attempts she made at it.

"I promise," he swore, and Rukia was beginning to think that, for the first time in her existence, she would witness Renji bawling like a baby. Still holding back the waterworks, he continued: "Even if Captain Kuchiki tries to maim me and the whole world is against us, I promise I'll stay by you. I don't ever want want you going through so much pain ever again, and if it takes me holding onto you for eternity to achieve my goal, then I'll make sure you suffocate before I let go." They shared a laugh at that, still unable to calm their friendly antics even in this situation, and then Rukia spoke again.

"You idiot...I'm so fucking sorry, Renji," the fun and bittersweet joy contained in her eyes turned more serious and regretful, as shining orbs of water made their descent down her face, leaving long, thin trails of moisture against her cheeks. The sight of her added on to her words made Renji almost pout in confusion, yet he held his smile, trying to see if he could cheer her up, something he prided himself on always being able to do. Leaning their faces closer so he could see her better, Renji raised his calloused fingers up to gently wipe away her tears, almost as if he were trying to smudge away an ink stain with less force than usual. Gentle...it was not a word that anyone would ever use to describe the redhead, but then again, he never acted the way others saw him act when it came to Rukia.

"The fuck are you sorry about?" he asked playfully, though obviously still keeping a serious intention. Even though his goal was to make her smile once more, he _was _still curious about why she had apologized.

"Stop fucking swearing," protested Rukia with a bossy tone, trying to remove his palm from where it was now cupping the side of her face, and breaking their eye contact. He held firm, however, and she practically growled, as a continuation to her previous statement, "You're ruining the moment, doofis."

"You just swore, yourself," protested Renji with a laugh, taking delight in the fact that her playful smirk had returned. She raised her head up, hand still over his where it was touching her face so they could continue their battle of mocking.

"Well, I'm allowed to swear when I'm scolding you!" she retorted, and then she shoved both her knee and her palm on his chest to push him backwards, his body hitting the floor with a loud 'bang' as she assumed a position sitting atop him, as if claiming victory.

"Well, even before that you swore!" They were laughing now, their old-time antics coming to light as Renji flipped his friend over and pinned her wrists down. She fought back with a few kicks, and in no time they were just wrestling, words forgotten and being broken off breathlessly when either tried speaking. Their chuckles and play filled the room, and when at last they conceded that a winner could not be decided, they ended up panting on the wood floor, still laughing happily, Renji laying flat on his back with Rukia using his cloth-covered chest as a pillow.

"Renji," got out the raven-haired girl when any and all giggles had subsided. Her head raised up so she could lock gazes with the man, and her smile dropped. Not into sadness, as one might expect, but into longing, as Rukia allowed her intense love for this man to show. "I'm sorry I didn't tell you I loved you before it was too late." Renji's face went blank upon hearing the confession. Kaien had told him as much, but...hearing her say the words, admitting to having feelings for him...it was almost too much for the redhead to handle, as he felt his heart clench with affection for the very girl he was staring at. In a flash, he was sitting up, Rukia engulfed by his massive arms and pressed tightly against his chest.

"Heh..." he laughed, a short exclamation that ended in his voice cracking. Tears began to bead in his eyes for the second time that day as he replied, "...that's my line."

* * *

><p>"Thank you for seeing us, Kuchiki-taicho," said Ukitake, as he and his lieutenant took a seat before said man in one of the many rooms that made up the Kuchiki manor. "We know that you are a very busy man." The noble continued to stare ahead at the two men before himself, not relinquishing his stoic gaze and emotionless expression as each man was given a cup of piping-hot tea, which was set before them gracefully by the servant, who departed almost immediately after completing the task. The cups, not surprisingly, were ivory white, aside from golden swirls and designs which adorned them, and they matched perfectly with the plates they rested on. The tea aroma, even, was intoxicating, and it was obvious that all were brewed from only the finest tea leaves in the Court of Pure Souls.<p>

"Seeing as this matter supposedly regards Rukia, I could not very well refuse your request for an audience," replied Byakuya coldly, almost acting as if these two were wasting his time, when they could very well be bringing him said woman instead. "Your wife informed me by way of hell butterfly that Rukia is currently residing at your residence, Shiba. Would you mind telling me why that is?" It was obviously far from a question, and Kaien planned on thoroughly answering it.

"With no disrespect, Kuchiki-taicho, I'm going to ask if you wanna hear the long, sugar-coated answer, or the short, blatant facts." The air and aura of the room was extremely serious, even when it involved the carefree, jolly lieutenant and his kind, caring captain, and it was obvious that nothing said in the coarse of the conversation would even resemble a joke.

"As Ukitake acknowledged earlier, I am a man with little time. It would be right of me to inform you that I also contain little patience." It was a clear-cut answer, blatant and to the point, with no room for unneeded details. But then again, no one would ever except anything less from the infamous Captain Kuchiki.

"Rukia's in love," said Kaien, cutting straight to the main issue as Byakuya had requested. "It's no dinky little crush, either; she has feelings for someone that go much deeper than the very concept of love, even. She has a stronger bond with this person than most people can imagine." Byakuya's eyes narrowed, his expression crossed somewhere in between suspicion and surprise as he replied,

"Assuming I believe this claim, why should anything of this nature be problematic? Rukia is a noble, and must learn her place in society. There is no time for her to worry herself over feelings and emotions." The statement was shocking, due to the fact that everyone in Soul Society knew the reason that Byakuya had taken Rukia into the clan in the first place, that was except for Rukia herself, and every other shinigami that hadn't been alive to witness it. Kaien sighed.

"I don't think you understand, Kuchiki-taicho," replied Kaien. "Rukia has been with this guy since she was a little kid. They've grown up side by side, and in a place like Hanging Dog, no less. Now, even you, a noble who would never even think of wiping his _feet _in a place like that, must know that being so close in an environment like that can make two people experience intense feelings for one another." Though he seemed to loosen up a bit, Byakuya was obviously still suspicious.

"And why exactly _should _I believe this? I haven't noticed any sign of this from Rukia." Well, that was predictable. Neither Kaien nor Ukitake expected that she would have shown any sign of her heartbreak around her adoptive brother, probably due to the fact that she feared him, and didn't have a good enough relationship with the man to confide in him. This time, it was the white-haired man that spoke.

"You probably are not aware of this, Kuchiki-taicho, but Rukia has been departing from the training grounds in the middle of practice constantly, so she can run off to cry alone. Part of the reason why is her depression over losing this young man. Both myself and my lieutenant can confirm this, as can my third seat." The word of three highly-ranked officers such as themselves was not a thing to be taken lightly, and it was finally starting to seem as if Byakuya was beginning to believe their story. After all, there wasn't much of a reason that such a lie would be made.

"I will not repeat myself," said Byakuya. "Rukia is not to engage in any relationships, regardless of whether or not she holds love for someone. She accepted the life of a noble, and so she must accept the fact." Kaien had known for certain that this argument would be made against them, however he had long before formulated a more-than-sufficient comeback.

"I believe that you yourself defied that same logic not long ago, Captain Kuchiki." The fukutaicho's words cut through the air, and he almost felt bad for escalating to that level as he saw the very tiny amount of pain that entered the noble's eyes as the man was reminded of his wife, the woman whom Rukia was a mirror image of, and whose death was still fairly recent.

"I was born into this life," argued Byakuya, the sadness in his eyes vanishing a millisecond after it had appeared. "Rukia has chosen this path for herself. I have made a promise to myself, and to my late parents, to strictly uphold the rules, and I cannot make any exceptions."

"She left only because he told her to go," informed Kaien. "And he told her to accept the adoption even when he wanted nothing more than to stay with her, simply because he knew that she could live a much better life. He loves her just as much as she loves him. I spoke to him personally, and, well, all I can tell you is...he's made it his life goal to defeat you, so he can be at a high enough social status to be with Rukia, rather than hurting her well being by going after her in the position he is now." Now, this seemed to intrigue Byakuya, and for the first time in the conversation, Kaien was hopeful that he had made at least some kind of a breakthrough.

"What is this young man's name?" asked Byakuya, surely wishing to know if he knew of him. Kaien almost wanted to smirk in success, performing an internal victory dance as he replied,

"Abarai Renji. And, Kuchiki-taicho, if you promise me that he won't be maimed or killed in any way, I'll gladly tell you where to find him." The noble seemed to contemplate the offer for a moment, deciding whether he would be able to calm his somewhat violent tendencies enough to meet the lieutenant's terms.

"Those conditions are acceptable," conceded Byakuya, at last. "Now, I would like to know where this man is, and also where my sister is." At that, Kaien had to force down a self-satisfied smirk. This was a fun contest, and he was sure that his side had won.

"I believe that the both of them are reconciling right now, Captain." Byakuya's eyes narrowed, before closing fully, and the man let out an exhale, almost a sigh, before his gray orbs opened once more, containing a small bit of respect even through the glare he was currently giving.

"You truly are crafty, Shiba," admitted Byakuya, and then he stood from his sitting position, turning to face the door way. "I wish to see both of them tomorrow. Complete at least this task, or I will noteven _consider_ giving them a chance. Understood?"

"Yes, sir, thank you," replied Kaien, bowing in his seat. A moment later, Byakuya was gone, and Kaien finally allowed himself the smile which he had been holding in all through the last part of the conversation. Kuchiki Byakuya had a heart, and the thirteenth squad's lieutenant was certain that he wouldn't let those two down.

* * *

><p>Kaien slowly opened the door to the home he shared with his wife, and the first thing he was met with when he did so was her smiling face, signaling him to follow her down the hall. He did so, despite his curiosity, and when they arrived before the door of the room that Rukia was staying in, Miyako put a finger to her lips, telling him silently to stay quiet. And when she opened the shoji door for him, the sight he saw was a heartwarming one.<p>

Renji, sitting up and sleeping, leaned against the wall of the room opposite the door, his body hunched over so his face was beside the also-slumbering Rukia's, whose tiny body was almost hard to see, because she was being held so deeply in his arms, his body curling around hers affectionately, her back to his chest, her arms and hands atop his. The two individuals were cheek to cheek in the embrace also, and even with his utterly joyful smile on, Kaien couldn't help but wonder how they managed to achieve such a feat, considering their disparate sizes. As soon as the shoji was closed once more, to conceal the young couple, Miyako anxiously whispered,

"How did it go?" She was obviously very worried about the possible outcome, as had he himself been before the conversation with the Head of the Kuchiki Clan. Redirecting his gaze at the rice paper of the door that was hiding the two little lovebirds he and his wife(not to mention their captain)had been helping out the past couple days, he put a hand on his wife's shoulder, urging her to do the same.

"They'll be just fine."

A month later, an engagement was announced.

END

Yay for a happy ending! ^_^ I feel so warm and fuzzly inside. :) Well, anyways, thanks again for everything guys, thanks for the reviews, the favs, the alerts, all of it, they've all helped motivate me to get through the writing process! I really hope you guys have enjoyed reading as much as I've enjoyed writing. :) Bleach belongs to Tite Kubo, not myself, and I love and appreciate all comments and opinions!


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